Eight years in Saudi slammer for rights campaigner

(Image of a prison used for illustrative purposes)

A founding member of one of Saudi Arabia's leading human rights organisations has been jailed for eight years in the Gulf kingdom, the BBC reported.

Abdulkarim al-Khader took over at the head of the Saudi Political and Civil Rights Association in March, after two colleagues were jailed, Iran's Press TV reported.

The organisation was set up in 2009 by academics and lawyers in a bid to reform the country's legal system but it disbanded after the March ruling. Leading members of the group have had their activities restricted by state-imposed travel bans, among other measures.

Five years of Khader's sentence are to be suspended, as long as he doesn't continue working with the group upon his release.

Activists have faced increasing restrictions on their work in the Kingdom since protests escalated among the Kingdom's Shia minority in the wake of the 2011 Arab Uprising.